In early March the Pacific Community Charter School middle school students went to San Francisco for a 3-day field study that was designed to complement the beginning of an Asian studies unit with a focus on Imperial China. The class stayed at the Fort Mason Youth Hostel and kicked off their trip with a visit to the Maritime Museum where they learned about Kenichi Horie.
Cosmos MacLeod, 6th-grade, shared the story of how the Japanese yachtsman Kenichi Horie “escaped” Japan in his tiny boat, the Mermaid. “Horie’s most notable achievement was being the first known man to make a non-stop, solo crossing of the Pacific Ocean. After ninety-four days completing his courageous journey, he arrived in San Francisco but was briefly arrested in the confusion of his arrival in the port of San Francisco. He, however, was luckily set free by Mayor George Christopher and given a visa and key to the city. At age eighty-six, Kenichi Horie is still alive and well and is regarded as one of Japan’s most famous yachtsmen.”
Settling into their urban environment, students traveled around the city by foot and public transit, including a cable car ride to visit the Cable Car Museum. Cian Fahey, 6th-grade, describes their cable car ride: “Once we reached the large golden and red cable car we bought tickets and got on. Lots of people wanted to stand but some preferred to sit down. The cable car moved at a slow pace of 12 mph. The driver came to a few abrupt stops on the way to Chinatown. We got off the cable car in Chinatown and went into the Cable Car Museum. [It] was very interesting, holding many old cable cars and parts. Under the museum was a room that had a glass panel showing the working cables being shifted by gears and motors.”
Students took a long walk from Chinatown to the Asian Art Museum where middle school teacher, Isabel Kuniholm, was excited for the students to see a range of work from the different dynasties that they are studying in class. Talula Boucher, 6th-grade, appreciated her teacher’s efforts. “The Asian Art Museum was really cool. There were lots of statues of gods, people, and buddha. We got to see old weapons, jade carvings, baskets, pottery, and paintings.”
The field study also included stops at the Fortune Cookie Factory, a boba tea shop, and the Japanese Tea Garden. TJ Coleman, 6th-grade, enjoyed the Japanese Tea Garden and thought “there was a ton of cool stuff there. There was big bridge to climb on, a shop and even some [koi] fish. One fish was orange and there was also a red one. We went and checked out the pagodas. They were pretty tall.”
Rosemary Whiteside, 8th grade, captured the overall group reflections of their trip. “Overall, it was a really fun and amazing experience, and everyone had a great time. I really liked going to Chinatown, riding the cable car and getting to see the city. [This] was one my favorite field trips of all time and I learned so much about San Francisco.”
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